Broken Vows

Hadeon

I take a sharp breath as I turn around to the sound of the voice; I don't know how, but I know it is him, the man I saw. He is here. He is real, I think as I look him over. He's leaning against the large crow statue looking so incredibly perfect. I almost wonder if he's a fae; he's just as striking and ethereal looking as any fae I have ever seen. He looks no older than me, but that doesn't mean much: he could be hundreds of years old. I have a sudden thought that he could be a vampire, but I dismiss it quickly. Vampires don't associate with any other species. They don't even get along with most of them, especially wolves and dragons. The werewolves and dragons that are here would have smelled a vampire before now. That would have led to quite the scene.

"Who are you?" I finally manage to ask. It feels like time has stopped. He pushes off from the statue and looks at me with a half-smile, his piercing eyes locked on mine.

As he walks closer, he holds out his hand, and the air shimmers in his palm as the long stem of a blood-red rose sprouts into existence. He stops a few feet from me, holding the rose out to me. As I take the rose from him, he smiles a little more.

"I'm Hadeon." He speaks low in the still night air. My heart is beating so quickly and loudly that I wouldn’t be surprised if he could hear it.

"What are you doing out here all alone, Princess?" he questions, raising an eyebrow and smirking a little at me.

"I'm no Princess. My name is Willow," I remark. I can't stop staring at him. I want to know everything about him.

"Oh no, you definitely are a Princess. You are far too beautiful not to be."

I giggle at his words and feel myself blushing.

"Why are you out here?" I ask, just wanting him to keep talking; his voice is almost intoxicating.

"Waiting for you." He moves a little closer, and I feel warm and lightheaded.

"Really? How did you know I would come this way?" I'm just trying to keep my head clear and my thoughts in order. I have never been so entranced by a man.

"I just hoped you would. I wanted to meet the beautiful Princess who is dancing with all the Kings."

"You have been watching me?"

He smiles and nods. "I hope you will dance with me, Princess." He holds out his hand to me.

"What here? We can't even hear the music," I reply, a little shocked.

"Why not here?"

The air around us pulses and shimmers a bit as faint music begins to play. He never mutters a spell like most witches and wizards do. He seems to use magic just as quickly as the Fae, but his round ears tell me he must be a wizard. I can't seem to figure out what he is.

"Dance with me, Princess." He smiles, looking so perfect, and I take his hand.

"I've never seen you before tonight. Where are you from?" I query as we dance alone in the garden. I know I shouldn't be out here alone with him, but I can't seem to convince myself to return to the party yet.

"I have been traveling for the last several years, but I felt it was time to return home. I must say I certainly am glad I did." He utters, pulling me just a little closer to him.

"Tell me about you; I would much rather talk about you, beautiful."

I can feel my cheeks flush at his words. He is charming, and I am drawn to him like nothing I have ever known before. I'm just about to answer him when I hear Rana calling my name in the distance. I turn to look for her as the music slowly fades, and we stop dancing. I feel his lips brush the back of my hand, and I turn back to face him.

"Well, Princess, I fear I must go. I have some pressing matters I have neglected for too long already."

He slowly drops my hand. I want to argue, but Rana calls my name again. Her voice is moving closer. My head feels a little lost in the fog.

"Thank you for the dance, Princess. 'til we meet again."

"Will I see you again?" I question, feeling a little panicked suddenly but trying to hide it.

"If that is your wish, Princess." He smiles before turning and leaving in the shadows.

Rana calls me again. She's just around the bend in the garden. I call back to her and turn to meet her. I still have this strange haze inside my head. I try to shake my head to clear it as she approaches.

"Here you are. You had me worried. What are you doing out here all alone, Willow?" she interrogates.

"Nothing. I just went for a walk. I saw him again, Rana. We danced," I sigh, feeling a little euphoric.

"Saw who? The mystery man?"

"Yes. He's so handsome and charming," I swoon, sighing. I’m feeling like I’m floating and loving it, as I smell the rose he gave me.

"Well, where is he now?" She starts to look around for him. "You are not acting like yourself. Are you all right, Willow?"

"He said he had something that he needed to attend to." I look in the direction he left in.

“He did say I would see him again if that was my wish. I don't feel like myself. He makes me feel so strange, but it's the nicest strange feeling. I can't even explain. I could have danced in his arms forever; it just felt right.”

"Well, we should head back; the Ball will end soon, and I don't want to miss anymore." Rana smiles, intertwines her arm with mine, and leads me back to the Ball.

I give her a smile, but I really, I wish Hadeon had stayed longer. I don't know when I will get to learn more about him, and he seems to be the only thing I can think about. I wonder if this is the same feeling that shifters feel with the mate bond. Is this what that feeling is? Is he a shifter of some kind? How he freely uses magic, I could swear he was elven, but he looks human. Hadeon is a puzzle my fuzzy brain can't seem to unravel.

When we return to the party, Cadmus comes to meet us and looks me up and down, and notices the rose.

"Where did you sneak off, too?" he asks. The look on his face is a mix of concern and anger. I don't know why he would be angry with me. I find it more than a little annoying that he is looking at me like that.

"She said she went for a walk and met that mystery man in the garden," Rana answers. I shoot her a look as Cadmus's face shifts to complete anger. I'm starting to feel like a child: Rana is telling on me, and Cadmus is giving me a look like an angry parent.

"You know, anything could have happened to you. Who is this man? What’s his name? Where is he from? You know, I thought you would have more sense than to go off alone, especially with some strange man you don't know!"

Cadmus is definitely angry. I can feel the heat coming off him as he struggles to hold back his dragon form; his eyes even begin to shift color from deep brown to jewel green. This only seems to make me feel angrier. He has no right to be mad at me. I didn't do anything wrong, not really. I know it wasn't appropriate to be alone with a man I had just met, but Cadmus should trust me.

"I'm not a child Cadmus. I don't need you or want you to protect me." I glare back at the angry man.

"You say that, but what if something happened to you? You don't know anything about this man. What's his name, and where the hell is he now?" Cadmus is fuming now, and puffs of smoke escape his nostrils as he tries to take heavy, steady breaths to calm down. A few people are beginning to look our way as our argument becomes louder.

"Okay, let's just all calm down a bit," Rana says, stepping in front of Cadmus and me, breaking our glaring stare-down. His protective big brother act is getting old. I don't need to be protected.

Cadmus takes one large breath and huffs, sending more smoke out of his nose, but his eyes shift back to a solid brown.

"Willow, Cadmus and I were worried about you because we are your friends." Rana's gentle nature has both Cadmus and me calming down now. I know they just want me to be safe, and anything could have happened to me, but I do know magic. I may not be as good at it as Rana, but I can take care of myself. Cadmus's face softens as he looks at me over the top of Rana's head. I think for a moment that she might just be his mate. But if she were, he surely would have told her and made some kind of move to claim her. He has to know how she feels about him; he can't be that dense, can he?

"What was his name Willow? Where is he even from? Better yet, what is he? I can smell him on you, but I can't figure out his scent. It seems like he went to great lengths to mask it." Cadmus sounds calmer and tries to mask the anger written all over his face. I know him too well and can see through his calm facade. I don't really want to tell him anything. I don't know what Cadmus might do. He could take his role of my protector too far, and I don't want anything to stop me from seeing Hadeon again.

"Willow, you should tell him what you know. We don't know this man, and he could be dangerous," Rana whispers, trying to avoid any more eavesdroppers. I take a heavy breath, knowing they won't just leave this alone as much as I want them to. I tell Cadmus everything I do know which isn't much.

He is clearly frustrated by the lack of information. Cadmus huffs off. Rana and I look at each other as he leaves the Ball, not saying anything to either of us.

"Where is he going?" I glare after him. When I look back at Rana, she's looking at me with a strange look of confusion.

"He's probably just going to check with the guards. Maybe to see the guest list and see if anyone with that name was even invited." Rana shrugs and links arms with me.

"Come on, we should head home anyway." Rana and I start to walk back to the part of the garden where the portal will be appearing, so we can return home.

"Do you really think you will see him again?" Rana's question takes me off guard a little.

"I hope I do; he said I would if that was what I wanted." I'm fighting to keep the panic out of my voice and sound confident. I don't know why Rana doesn't seem happy to me. She just appears concerned. That coupled with the way Cadmus is acting is pissing me off. I just thought my two best friends would be excited for me, especially Cadmus. I know how badly he wants to find his mate, and that is how I'm feeling. I know witches don't have that same mate bond that shifters and the Fae do, but this feels like that.

"I just want you to be careful, Willow. We don't know who this man is. I hope we get to meet him. I think that will help me feel better. Cadmus didn't seem happy when he couldn't find you, you know." Rana is looking at me out of the corner of her eye as we walk down the dark path in the garden.

"I know he's taking his role as an older brother too far," I sigh, and Rana shakes her head, making the curls bounce.

"Well, someone needs to, I suppose," She giggles as we reach the portal. I look back one last time, hoping to see Hadeon in the shadows. All I do see is the giant dragon flying above the garden.